Because Mitsuhiro Hayakawa descended early, the ball naturally fell into the hands of Taisuke Otsubo, who had jumped later.
Kazunari Takao caught the ball and, without the slightest hesitation, immediately whipped a pass forward.
During the jump ball, Shintaro Midorima had already sprinted to the frontcourt corner behind the three-point line.
It was a gamble.
And clearly, he had won.
Midorima caught the ball and, facing a completely open basket, immediately jumped and shot without hesitation.
"Today Cancer is ranked first in luck. The lucky item is a girl doll. In this first gamble… destiny is on my side."
"I have done everything within my power. In this game… my shot…"
Midorima released the ball.
The basketball traced a huge arc through the air.
While the ball was still flying, Midorima had already turned and started walking away, saying calmly,
"It won't miss."
Swish!!!
The moment the words fell, the ball dropped cleanly through the net.
Yukio Kasamatsu gritted his teeth.
"The Generation of Miracles… they really are troublesome opponents."
Ryota Kise ran over with a smile.
"It's fine, Captain. Just give me the ball!"
Possession changed.
Kaijō High had the ball.
Koji Kobori passed it to Yukio Kasamatsu, who dribbled across half court.
After crossing the line, Kasamatsu handed the ball to their ace, Ryota Kise.
Kise caught the ball and looked at the player guarding him.
When he realized it wasn't Shintaro Midorima but someone with a somewhat similar hair color to his own, he said,
"They're not letting Midorima guard me?"
Kiyoshi Miyaji broke out in a slight sweat.
To be honest, facing a member of the Generation of Miracles put a lot of pressure on him.
But he would never admit that out loud, so he stubbornly said,
"I'm enough to guard you."
Kise's expression shifted slightly.
"Is that so?"
No matter what, Kise was still a member of the Generation of Miracles, even if he was considered the weakest among them.
Not just anyone could stop him one-on-one.
Kise glanced at Midorima, who stood there calmly, and thought,
'Was this your arrangement, Midorima? You're really looking down on me.'
Midorima seemed to notice Kise's gaze and turned his head to look at him.
But after only a second of eye contact, Midorima calmly turned away again, completely ignoring him.
Seeing this, Kise stopped hesitating and began his attack.
"Since you're underestimating me, don't blame me if I don't hold back."
With that, Kise started his move.
He used several between-the-legs dribbles to shift Miyaji's center of gravity.
Miyaji knew how strong the Generation of Miracles were, so his focus was extremely sharp.
But precisely because he was so tense and focused, Kise's probing step easily threw him off balance.
Kise seized the opening and instantly blew past Miyaji, charging straight into the paint.
Seeing this, Taisuke Otsubo immediately stepped up to help defend.
Kise's eyes sharpened.
He bounced the ball hard, spun around, cleanly slipped past Otsubo, and finished with a layup.
After being beaten so easily, Miyaji could only shake his head with a bitter smile.
"Coach and Midorima really… why did they make me guard Kise?"
Kazunari Takao patted Miyaji on the shoulder.
"It's fine, senpai. Getting faked out by Kise is normal. Only people who defend seriously get shaken."
Miyaji twitched his lips.
"I didn't even fall for it!"
Takao laughed.
"You will sooner or later."
...
Possession switched again.
After dribbling across half court, Takao was about to follow the coach's plan and pass the ball when he noticed something.
Kise was now guarding Midorima.
Kise and Yoshitaka Moriyama had switched defensive assignments.
Midorima looked calmly at Kise.
"You made a mistake, Kise."
Kise laughed casually.
"Don't say that, Midorima-kun. Your three-pointers are really a headache for us."
Midorima pushed up his glasses and said nothing more.
Seeing this, Takao revealed a strange smile.
The single finger he had raised with his left hand changed.
Now it was two fingers.
Which meant…
The play had changed.
When Otsubo saw this from the paint, he immediately ran out to the perimeter.
At the same time, Shinsuke Kimura also moved out.
The two spread apart and positioned themselves to Kise's left.
Seeing this, Midorima began running toward Takao's position—toward the left side.
Kise immediately chased after him.
But Kimura's screen stopped him.
Kise quickly dodged around it, preparing to continue chasing.
But then Otsubo's screen arrived as well.
Kise's pupils shrank.
"Double screen! Help defense!!!"
Mitsuhiro Hayakawa and Koji Kobori immediately abandoned their assignments and rushed toward Midorima.
At that exact moment, Takao passed the ball.
And the pass went…
To the paint!
'Crap!'
Kise quickly turned his head and saw Kimura—the player who had set the first screen—cutting straight into the paint.
Catching the pass, Kimura finished with a dunk.
Kise's expression immediately darkened.
Kasamatsu's face also became serious.
"Damn it… Shūtoku is actually running plays."
Having a terrifying outside weapon like Midorima was already annoying enough.
But now Shūtoku was also executing tactical plays.
This drastically increased their offensive threat.
Someone had to guard Midorima on the perimeter so he wouldn't get comfortable shooting.
But on their team, only Kise could somewhat guard Midorima one-on-one.
No one else could.
And to truly limit Midorima's shooting space, it usually required two defenders.
But once two defenders stepped out, someone would inevitably be left open.
Shūtoku was a powerhouse team.
None of their players could be underestimated.
Give them an open shot, and they would punish you immediately.
Kasamatsu understood this very clearly.
"So now… the only option is to outscore them?"
In fact, focusing on offense wasn't a bad idea.
Because Shūtoku didn't seem particularly serious about defending Kise.
They almost looked relaxed.
Logically, the one guarding Kise should have been Midorima, who was strong defensively.
But instead, Shūtoku had assigned Miyaji to defend him.
This left Kasamatsu puzzled.
In the stands, Satsuki Momoi immediately saw through Shūtoku's strategy.
While writing in her notebook, she said,
"Not bad… Shūtoku's coach actually knows what he's doing."
...
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